Fascinating study shows the minimum salary you need to buy a home in all 50 states - do YOU earn enough?
A new study has calculated the minimum salary needed to buy a home in each of the 50 states.
The study from GOBankingRates found 42 states that do not require a six-figure salary for such an undertaking, and eight where the sum falls considerably short.
Among them were usual suspects California and Hawaii, with New York noticeably absent from the list of worst offenders. On the other end were less-traveled locales like West Virginia, where a mere $32,000 is enough to secure a home.
Would-be buyers should take heed, as the firm calculated each state’s average by assuming buyers would choose a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage and make a 20 percent down payment with a 6.82 percent interest rate.
Assuming afterwards that housing costs would not exceed 30 percent of the hypothetical person's gross income, the firm found the minimum salary needed to comfortably own.
A new study has tabulated the minimum salary needed to buy a home in each of the 50 states. The most expensive was scenic Hawaii, where a home on average fetches just under $1million. A home in a tropical setting on one of the state's islands is seen here
In second was California, where a home on average will run you $785,333, GOBankingRates found. The salary pegged as necessary to afford such a sum, in turn, was $164,168.07 - more than three times the average US annual salary. A townhouse-style home in LA is seen here
The most expensive, GOBankingRates found, was scenic Hawaii, where a home on average fetches just under $1million.
A 20 percent down payment of $193,454 is therefore desired, meaning, assuming housing costs could not exceed 30 percent of gross income, the salary needed to comfortably afford a home was $202,200.59, GoBankingRates said.
In second was California, where a home on average will run you $785,333, GOBankingRates found.
The salary pegged as necessary to afford such a sum, in turn, was $164,168.07 - more than three times the average US annual salary in Q4 of 2023, $59,384.
Next worst was the lone entry that's not a state - the government-heavy District of Columbia, better known to most as Washington, DC.
There, a $150,096.08 salary was deemed necessary to afford a home that on average will cost $718,017 - a number that again is well above the national average.
The average home price in the United States was $495,100 in the second quarter of 2023, according to the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Rounding out the top five - or bottom, depending how you look at it - was Massachusetts, Washington, and Colorado in that order, with each obliquely asking residents to make $115,000 or higher.
Next worst was the lone entry that's not a state - the government-heavy District of Columbia, better known to most as Washington, DC. A home for sale in the municipality is seen here in November
Rounding out the top five - or bottom, depending how you look at it - was Massachusetts, Washington, and Colorado, with each obliquely asking residents to make $115,000 or more. A home for sale in Colorado - which requires a salary of $115,170.84 - is seen here
Other states that demand more than $100,000 included Utah (pictured), New Jersey, and Oregon, with New Hampshire narrowly missing the mark with a needed salary of $99,201
Other states that demand more than $100,000 included Utah, New Jersey, and Oregon, with New Hampshire narrowly missing the mark with a needed salary of $99,201.
On the other end, as one might have already suspected, prospective homebuyers will find the polar opposite, with southern states like Kentucky and Louisiana offering relative bargains considering the current, stretched state of the US housing market.
Keeping with that theme, the state deemed the fifth-cheapest in terms of salary was none other than Arkansas, where a $198,364 average home value requires residents to make at least $41,466.52 to comfortably own.
Even cheaper was the great state of Kentucky, where a $41,058.48 is enough to snap up homes that cost, on average, $196,412.
Next up was also southern Louisiana, which, aside from its Creole and Cajun cultures, is known for its place along the US Gulf Coast and its seminal cities like New Orleans and Baton Rouge.
There, despite this rich history and convenient location, homebuyers should make just over $40,000, for homes that, on average, cost about $195,000.
Runner-up for least financially taxing state, moreover, was Mississippi, where a measly annual take home of $35,673.80 was deemed more than enough to live in a mortgaged home comfortably.
On the other end of the spectrum, southern states like Kentucky and Louisiana (seen here, a home in Bedico) offered relative bargains considering the current, stretched state of the US housing market
Keeping with that theme, the state deemed the fifth-cheapest in terms of salary was none other than Arkansas, where a $198,364 average home value requires residents to make at least $41,466.52 to comfortably own
Even cheaper was the great state of Kentucky, where a $41,058.48 is enough to snap up homes that cost, on average, $196,412
Next up was also southern Louisiana, which, aside from its Creole and Cajun cultures, is known for its place along the US Gulf Coast and its seminal cities like New Orleans and Baton Rouge. A historic house located on the Isle of Jean Charles is seen here
Runner-up for least financially taxing state, moreover, was Mississippi, where a measly annual take home of $35,673.80 was deemed more than enough to live in a mortgaged home comfortably
The most affordable state, though, was unsurprisingly West Virginia, which regularly ranks among the cheapest locales to live. Home to some of the most inexpensive cities in the US, the state boasts a 2024 average home value of $155,080 - less than a third of the national average
The most affordable state, unsurprisingly, was West Virginia, which regularly ranks among the cheapest US locales to live.
Home to some of the most inexpensive cities in the US, the state boasts a 2024 average home value of $155,080 - less than a third of the national average.
This means that you will only need to make $32,418 a year, so says GoBankingRates - as long as you make good on your monthly mortgage payments of $810.46
All data used in the study is up to date as of June 13, the firm said Wednesday, while sharing its list for all to see. It may be useful if you're in the market for a home - or a move.
